News

DEKRA acquires Core VIS and Core PPS in Charlotte, North Carolina

Entry into US Power Plant Inspection Business

The International expert organization DEKRA is acquiring the US inspection company Core Visual Inspection Services (Core VIS) located in Charlotte, North Carolina. For DEKRA, this means entering into the inspection business for power plants in the USA.

Core VIS has a specific focus on mechanized testing in the field of nuclear power but conventional plants and gas turbines are also included in its customer portfolio. A particular strength is in the use of remote-controlled visual inspection robots that can access sensitive areas of power plants. The worldwide leading visual inspection systems by Visatec, a DEKRA subsidiary, are already used by Core VIS.

The associated company Core PPS, which offers solutions for managing foreign materials in sensitive areas of power plants, has also been acquired. Numerous well recognized leaders in energy production are among the customers of both companies, predominantly in southeastern USA.

“The acquisition of Core VIS and Core PPS is a further step in the DEKRA strategy to be present on all continents as a global partner with our core services,” says Ivo Rauh, the DEKRA SE Management Board member responsible for the worldwide industrial activities of this expert organization. “With this significant addition, we have succeeded in entering into the power plant inspection business in the USA at the highest technological level. This forms an ideal platform for the further expansion of our inspection activities in North America.”

According to Jim Wagner, the managing director of Core VIS and Core PPS : “Under the DEKRA umbrella, both companies have the best conditions for their further development. Our goal is to support our customers in the long term with technologically sophisticated services and to establish a broadly positioned and innovative base in order to do so.” Core VIS and Core PPS are to be integrated into the global DEKRA material testing and inspection (MT&I) Service Unit, in which the business will be bundled and expanded with non-destructive material testing and inspection of power plants and industrial plants. The current management will remain active in leading positions within the company.

19th World Conference on Non-Destructive Testing

13th - 17th June 2016 in Munich, Germany

Improve your expertise and enlarge your network in safety

The EMEA Safety in Action™ Conference, taking place on 21 - 22 Oct 2015 in Antwerp, Belgium, brings together safety professionals at all levels with one goal in mind - to make work safer. You network, share best practices and get new insight that helps you improve your safety performance. Topics include assuring process safety excellence, preventing serious injuries and fatalities, and more. The main language is English, but sessions are also offered in German.

DEKRA annual report 2014

DEKRA has a clear ambitious picture for the future: We will live in a safe world. Be it on the road, at work, or at home, we are committed to meeting this basic human need to ensuring safety. As wa pursue that objective, we are also looking forward to the 100th anniversary of DEKRA in the year 2025. By that time, we will have achieved our vision ''to be the global partner for a safe word''.

Further information about DEKRA can be found in our current annual report. This is available as a PDF file which you can either browse through on the screen or download.

PETROBOT

The PETROBOT project aims to develop a series of robots which can be used by inspectors to conduct remote inspection of pressure vessels and storage tanks widely used in the oil, gas and petrochemical industry. Currently the inspection of these tanks and pressure vessels is being done by people working inside these spaces which means the assets have to be shut down to ensure the safety of inspectors. Furthermore, vessels have to be decoupled from live sections of the plant, extensively cleaned to remove all products that can emit flammable or toxic gases and rendered safe for entry. In larger vessels, scaffolding is erected so that all necessary areas can be accessed during the inspection.

The objective of the PETROBOT project is minimize the exposure of personnel to potentially hazardous conditions, reduce downtime and save resources by using robotic technology to end the above procedure, which is long and costly.

PETROBOT mobilises the complete value chain, including robot and inspection technology providers, inspection service companies and end-users. The inspection robots will be tested in the installations of the end-user consortium members. Special project activities aim at preparing the future user community to maximize the uptake of the new technology.

Under the theme of “Exploring the Possibility of African Nuclear Energy Future” the conference will explore the continent’s nuclear energy future from the perspective of global practices. We have a bronze sponsor at this event with DEKRA Speaker presenting “Development of New Manipulators for PWR and BWR Nozzle and Vessel Inspection”.

The Africa Energy Indaba receives global recognition as the foremost African energy event for energy professionals from across the globe. Adopted by the World Energy Council (WEC) as the African regional event of the WEC and presented by the South African National Energy Association (SANEA), the Africa Energy Indaba is supported by the African Union and the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency. As such, the Africa Energy Indaba has achieved the highest level of endorsement and support for an energy conference on the continent.